Projecting and catching apparatus and projectile for use therewith

ABSTRACT

The specification describes apparatus for playing a game of skill. The apparatus comprises a playing piece and a hand-held ejector device comprising a pair of arms which have facing divergent tracks whereby the playing piece is upwardly ejected by cam action when the ejector device is closed onto the playing piece by the player. The playing piece is designed to be caught by the ejector device and again upwardly ejected and so on repeatedly according to the player&#39;&#39;s skill.

United States Patent 1191 Cramp et al. 1 1 Jan. 16, 1973 154 PROJECTINGAND CATCHING 2,227,705 I 1 1941 mum .273/90 R APPARATUS AND PROJECTILEFOR 3,183,903 5 1905 Thompson ..124/10 USE THEREWITH inventors: BenjaminCramp, Havering-Atte- Bower; Thomas Bowen-Edwards, London, both ofEngland Bentos Products Limited, Copford, Colchester, Essex, EnglandFiled: Feb. 23, 1971 Appl. No.: 118,189

Assignee:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS l/l9t32 Passariello ..l24/l0 7Primary Examiner-Richard C. Pinkham Assistant Examiner-Marvin SiskindAtl0rneyCushman, Darby & Cushman ABSTRACT The specification describesapparatus for playing a game of skill. The apparatus comprises a playingpiece and a hand-held ejector device comprising a pair of arms whichhave facing divergent tracks whereby the playing piece is upwardlyejected by cam action when the ejector device is closed onto the playingpiece by the player. The playing piece is designed to be caught by theejector device and again upwardly ejected and so on repeatedly accordingto the players skill;

4 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PROJECTING AND CATCHING APPARATUS ANDPROJECTILE FOR USE THEREWITH This invention relates to apparatus forplaying a game of skill.

Apparatus according to the invention comprises a playing piece and ahand-held ejector device for repeatedly upwardly ejecting and catchingsaid piece, said ejector device comprising a pair of interconnected armsadapted to be repeatedly moved together by the player, said arms havingfacing divergent tracks which cause ejection of the playing piece by camaction when the arms are closed with the piece between them.

The tracks of the opposed arms are preferably relatively disposed sothat as the arms close against the playing piece they do not exert on ita couple in any plane normal to the plane of such closing movement, andthe playing piece preferably comprises balanced head portions joined byan axle portion of smaller cross section for engagement by said arms.

In preferred embodiments of the invention the ejector device causes theplaying piece, as it is ejected, to rotate about an axis of symmetry ofthe playing piece, such axis being normal to the plane of closingmovement of the arms. This is achieved by forming the ejector device andplaying piece so that the opposed arms of the ejector device engage axleportions of the playing piece which are of different diameters. Forexample one arm may have twin parallel tracks and the other arm may havea single track which is located in a plane mid-way between said twintracks and which engages a medial portion of the axle of the playingpiece such medial portion having a diameter smaller than the abreastportions of the axle which are engaged by said twin tracks. Assumingthat the playing piece is balanced about its axle and the arms do notexert on the playing piece a couple in any plane normal to the closingmovement of the arms, the playing piece spins in dynamic equilibriumduring its ascent and its subsequent descent under gravity.

Preferably the playing piece comprises mutually balanced head portionsand an intervening axle of a length only slightly in excess of thethickness of the ejector arms or the thicker of them so that abutment ofthe head portions against the ejector device prevents substantial axialmovement of the playing piece during its ejection. The head portionspreferably have surfaces of conical, conoidal, part spherical or likeform at their facing sides to make the playing piece self-centering onthe ejector device when the playing piece is caught.

The playing piece is preferably made of plastics material.

The ejector device may comprise two arms interconnected at one endportion for bodily closing movement in parallel against the action of abiassing means which keeps the arms normally in open position.Alternatively, and preferably, the arms of the ejector device arepivotally interconnected. Said arms may for example be pivotallyconnected at or near one end and designed to be gripped in one hand at aposition between the pivot and the divergent tracks which engage theplaying piece. Alternatively and preferably the arms are pivoted incrossing relationship, i.e., scissor-wise, to provide handle portions onone side of the pivot and track portions on the other. The handleportions are preferably shorter than the track-bearing portions of thearms.

It is an advantage for the inner profile of at least one of the arms,over its track portion, to have a slight convex curvature towards theother arm.

The ejector arms may be normally held in open position by spring means,e.g., a blade or helical spring, or a piece of elastically extensiblematerial.

The ejector device is preferably made of plastics.

Certain embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of examplein the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows the ejector device and playing piece of one embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the ejector device, partly incross-section;

FIG. 3 is a detail view showing the playing piece of the apparatus shownin FIG. 1 (such playing piece being partly broken away in the drawing),and the way in which such piece is engaged by one arm of the ejectordevice;

FIG. 4 is an elevation of an alternative form of ejector device; and

FIG. 5 is an elevation of a third form of ejector device.

The apparatus which is the subject of FIGS. 1 to 3 comprises an ejectordevice 1 and a playing piece 2.

The ejector device comprises two arms 3,4 pivoted together in crossingrelationship. The arms 3 and 4 are plastics mouldings. Arm 3 comprisestwo moulded plies 3', 3" secured together in facing relationship; thetwo plies have end portions of greater thickness than their medialportions so that the two plies define a slot which extends over thegreater part of the length of the arm and the plies are secured togetherwith the arm 4 between them, such arm 4 traversing the said slot. Theends of the slot in arm 3 are shown in FIG. 2 and are designated 5 and6. The arm 4 comprises a single ply and has integral co-axial pivot pinssuch as 7 projecting from opposite faces thereof and these pins arereceived in recesses of slightly larger diameter formed in the innerfaces of the constituent plies of arm 3. The assembled arms aretherefore freely pivotable about the axis of pins 7 from the openposition shown in full lines in FIG. 1 to the closed position suggestedin broken lines. The arms are urged into open position by an elasticband 8 which passes around a pin 9 extending between the two plies ofarm 3 and is anchored at its two ends to a hook portion 10 on arm 4. Thelimiting open position of the arms is determined by abutment of a noseportionll on arm 4 against the end 6 of the slot in arm 3 through whichthe arm 4 extends.

The playing piece 2 is formed in two moulded sections 12,13, eachcomprising a hollow conical head portion. Section 12 has an integralaxle pin 14 which extends through the hub portion of section 13 and isretained by a spring washer 15 which holds the two sections together.The axle of the playing piece, which is exposed between the two headportions, comprises two end portions 16,16, integral with the headportions 12,13 respectively, and a central portion 17 of smallerdiameter formed by part of the axle pin of the section 12.

FIG. 3 shows the playing piece 1 in engagement with the twin tracksformed by the inner edges of the two plies 3,3 composing the arm 3. Itwill be seen that the thickness of the arm 3 is only slightly less thanthe distance between the head portions of the playing piece.

tions of the arms 3,4 in one hand, placing the playing piece between thearms 3 and 4, while they are in open position, and squeezing the handleportions of the arms 3,4 together so that the arm tracks are forcedagainst opposite sides of the playing piece axle and the playing pieceis cammed abruptly upwardly along the ejector arms and is ejected infree flight. The twin tracks formed by the plies 3',3 of arm 3 engagethe axle portions 16,16 as shown in FIG. 4 while the single track formedby the inner edge of arm 3 engages the smaller diameter central portion17 of the playing piece axle.

As the arm 3 engages the playing piece at positions which are moredistant from its axis than the position at which the playing piece isengaged by arm 4, the arm 3 has a mechanical advantage over arm 4 inexerting a turning moment on the playing piece and as the playing pieceis ejected it rolls along the arm 4 while making sliding contact witharm 3. The ejected playing piece is thus in rapid rotary motion whichpromotes its flight stability. As the playing piece descends undergravity, the player seeks to catch it between the open arms of theejector device so that the playing piece can again be ejected and thisrequires considerable skill.

An alternative form of ejector device is illustrated in FIG. 4. Thisejector device comprises two arms 18,19 the former of which is hollow sothat the arm 19 can nest into it as shown. The arm 19 has parallel ribs20 on its opposed faces and these ribs are received in grooves 21 in theinternal side faces of arm 18. The arms are shown in their open positioninto which they are urged by a helical compression spring 22 which bearsat one end against the interior of arm 18 and at the other end againstthe inner edge of arm 19. The fully open position of the arms isdetermined by abutment of stops 23 on the sides of arm 19 against stops24 on the internal side faces of arm 18. The arms are closed bysqueezing their lower portions together in the hand, against the actionof spring 22. The device can eject a playing piece such as piece 2(FIG. 1) in much the same way as the ejector device 1 shown in theearlier figures.

The third form of ejector device shown in FIG. comprises two arms 25,26,the former of which is hollow and receives within it the lower portionof arm 26. The arms are pivotable about the axis of pivot pins such as27 which project from opposite sides of the arm 26 and into holes in thesides of arm 25. The arms are urged into their illustrated open positionby a wire spring 28 which is anchored at one end to pivot pin 27 and atits other end bears against the arm 25. The arms are closed to causeejection of a playing piece such as piece 1 by holding the device in onehand just above the point of pivotal connection of the arms andsqueezing them together.

Apparatus according to the invention may comprise one ejector device ortwo or more of such devices can be provided to enable the game to beplayed by two or more players alternately catching and ejecting theplaying piece.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for playing a game, which apparatus comprises a radiallysymmetrical playing piece comprising opposed mutually balanced headportions and an intervening axle having portions of different diameters,and a hand-held ejector device for repeatedly upwardly' ejecting andcatching said playin piece, said e ector evrce comprising a pair of inerconnected arms adapted to be repeatedly moved together by the player,said arms having facing divergent tracks which engage said playing pieceaxle and cause ejection of said playing piece by cam action when saidarms are closed with said playing piece between them, said tracksbelonging to different said arms being relatively disposed for engagingportions of said axle which are of different diameters.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one arm of said ejectordevice has twin parallel tracks and the other arm of said ejector devicehas a single track located in a plane mid-way between said twin tracks,and wherein said playing piece axle has a medial portion having asmaller diameter than the end portions of such axle and wherein saidsingle track engages said smaller diameter axle portion whereas saidtwin tracks engage said larger diameter end axle portions.

3. Apparatus for playing a game, said apparatus comprising a radiallysymmetrical playing piece and a handheld ejector device for repeatedlyupwardly ejecting and catching said playing piece, said ejector devicecomprising a pair of arms pivoted together at a pivot point in crossingrelationship to provide handle portions on one side of said pivot andopposed tracks on the other side of said pivot, said opposed tracksdiverging in a direction away from said pivot for causing ejection ofsaid playing piece by cam action when said arms are closed with saidplaying piece between said opposed tracks, at least one of said armshaving over the track portion thereof, an inner profile which isconvexly curved towards the other of said arms, said ejector device alsoincorporating spring means which biasses said arms into open position.

4. Apparatus for playing a game, which apparatus comprises a playingpiece having mutually balanced head portions joined by an axle havingtwo end portions and a central portion of smaller diameter than said endportions, and also comprises a hand-held ejector device for repeatedlyupwardly ejecting and catching said playing piece, said ejector devicecomprising a pair of interconnected arms adapted to be repeatedly movedtogether by the player, said arms having facing divergent tracks whichcause ejection of the playing piece by cam action when the arms areclosed with the playing piece between them, one arm having twin paralleltracks which engage the said end axle portions and the other arm havinga single track which engages the said central axle portion whereby asthe playing piece is ejected the said one arm exerts on the playingpiece a turning moment causing it to rotate while the central axleportion slides along said other arm.

1. Apparatus for playing a game, which apparatus comprises a radiallysymmetrical playing piece comprising opposed mutually balanced headportions and an intervening axle having portions of different diameters,and a hand-held ejector device for repeatedly upwardly ejecting andcatching said playing piece, said ejector device comprising a pair ofinterconnected arms adapted to be repeatedly moved together by theplayer, said arms having facing divergent tracks which engage saidplaying piece axle and cause ejection of said playing piece by camaction when said arms are closed with said playing piece between them,said tracks belonging to different said arms being relatively disposedfor engaging portions of said axle which are of different diameters. 2.Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one arm of said ejector devicehas twin parallel tracks and the other arm of said ejector device has asingle track located in a plane mid-way between said twin tracks, andwherein said playing piece axle has a medial portion having a smallerdiameter than the end portions of such axle and wherein said singletrack engages said smalLer diameter axle portion whereas said twintracks engage said larger diameter end axle portions.
 3. Apparatus forplaying a game, said apparatus comprising a radially symmetrical playingpiece and a hand-held ejector device for repeatedly upwardly ejectingand catching said playing piece, said ejector device comprising a pairof arms pivoted together at a pivot point in crossing relationship toprovide handle portions on one side of said pivot and opposed tracks onthe other side of said pivot, said opposed tracks diverging in adirection away from said pivot for causing ejection of said playingpiece by cam action when said arms are closed with said playing piecebetween said opposed tracks, at least one of said arms having over thetrack portion thereof, an inner profile which is convexly curved towardsthe other of said arms, said ejector device also incorporating springmeans which biasses said arms into open position.
 4. Apparatus forplaying a game, which apparatus comprises a playing piece havingmutually balanced head portions joined by an axle having two endportions and a central portion of smaller diameter than said endportions, and also comprises a hand-held ejector device for repeatedlyupwardly ejecting and catching said playing piece, said ejector devicecomprising a pair of interconnected arms adapted to be repeatedly movedtogether by the player, said arms having facing divergent tracks whichcause ejection of the playing piece by cam action when the arms areclosed with the playing piece between them, one arm having twin paralleltracks which engage the said end axle portions and the other arm havinga single track which engages the said central axle portion whereby asthe playing piece is ejected the said one arm exerts on the playingpiece a turning moment causing it to rotate while the central axleportion slides along said other arm.